Food & Drink | JAPANESE KITCHEN Jul 20, 2019
The ongoing evolution of Japan's soup curry
by Makiko Itoh
This perfectly spicy soup curry is packed with healthy vegetables in a light, flavorful broth for an easily customizable, quick and easy meal.
National Jul 19, 2019
In ski hub Niseko, tension arises between locals and overseas residents
A growing number of complaints regarding an increase in foreign residents is straining relations in Niseko, an area in Hokkaido internationally known for its famous ski resorts. In the town of Kutchan, foreign residents make up over 10 percent of the population during winter. Tensions ...
National Jul 11, 2019
In Japan, the business of watching whales is far larger than the business of hunting them
by Elaine Lies
People packed the decks of the whale-watching boat, screaming in joy as a pod of orcas put on a show: splashing tails at each other, rolling over and leaping out of the water. In Kushiro, just 160 km south of Rausu, where the four dozen ...
Business Jul 4, 2019
Consortium to enter talks with Japan land ministry on privately operating seven Hokkaido airports
A consortium of companies is to enter exclusive talks with the land ministry over operating New Chitose and six other airports in Hokkaido, the ministry said Wednesday. The move is part of plans to privatize the operations of New Chitose, Wakkanai, Kushiro, Hakodate, Asahikawa, Obihiro ...
National Jul 1, 2019
Japan resumes commercial whaling after three decades; at least two taken on first day
Japanese whaling fleets set sail Monday to hunt whales commercially for the first time in 31 years, a day after Tokyo formally left the International Whaling Commission. As an IWC member, Japan halted commercial whaling in 1988. But it continued hunting whales for what it ...
National / Politics Jun 24, 2019
Japan mulls partially lifting ban on chicken meat from Russia ahead of leaders' G20 talks
Japan is considering partially lifting an import ban on chicken meat from Russia, with the two countries' leaders expected to discuss the matter on the sidelines of this week's Group of 20 summit in Osaka, government sources said Monday. Since 2005, Japan has banned imports ...
National / Crime & Legal Jun 7, 2019
Sapporo mother and boyfriend sent to prosecutors over death of 2-year-old girl
A mother and her boyfriend in Sapporo were referred to prosecutors Friday on suspicion of assaulting her 2-year-old daughter, who was pronounced dead at a hospital Wednesday. The suspected abuse of Kotori Ikeda occurred despite a child welfare official interviewing her mother last year following ...
National Jun 7, 2019
Japan to restart commercial whaling on July 1 after three-decade hiatus
A fleet of vessels will depart from Kushiro, Hokkaido, on July 1 as Japan resumes commercial whaling following a three-decade hiatus after the government announced its withdrawal from the International Whaling Commission in December, a local fishery source said Friday. A fleet of five vessels ...
National Jun 4, 2019
Woman rescued from drifting sailboat off Hokkaido identified as Russian national
A woman who was rescued from a drifting sailboat in waters off Hokkaido has been identified as a Russian national, the coast guard said Tuesday. The 48-year-old woman, identified as Tatiana Riabkova Leonidovna, told the coast guard that she departed Vladivostok, in Russia's Far ...
National / Politics Jun 3, 2019
Soviet documents reveal Moscow's view on territory seized from Japan at end of WWII
Top Soviet officials were aware that the lack of a reference in the 1951 San Francisco Peace Treaty to the sovereignty of islands seized from Japan in the closing days of World War II could be exploited in postwar negotiations with Tokyo, declassified documents ...
National Jun 3, 2019
Woman of unknown nationality rescued from sailboat drifting in sea off Hokkaido
A woman has been rescued from a drifting sailboat in waters off Hokkaido, but the local coast guard said Monday it has not been possible to clearly understand her situation due to communication difficulties. The small Israeli-flagged vessel was spotted drifting by a coast guard ...
National / Media | MEDIA MIX Jun 1, 2019
Lawmaker Hodaka Maruyama's 'war' gaffe puts spotlight on disputed isles
by Philip Brasor
Diet lawmaker Hodaka Maruyama was kicked out of opposition party Nippon Ishin no Kai last month over remarks he made during an exchange excursion to one of the Russian-controlled islands off the coast of Hokkaido that Japan claims as its own. Other opposition parties ...